Favorite Rejects 2023-03-24

Mitchell Hashimoto @mitchellh

I've developed a lot of plugin systems, and the OpenAI ChatGPT plugin interface might be the damn craziest and most impressive approach I've ever seen in computing in my entire life.

M. Nolan Gray @mnolangray

Wow, putting all of the low-income families between a railway and a floodplain in the middle of an industrial neighborhood? This is why Houston needs zoning! 😡 Oh wait, this is zoned Los Angeles. 😅

Seattle YIMBY @seattle_yimby

Great news! Seattle just released its annual report on accessory dwelling units (ADUs). Two key findings: (1) Only 12% of ADUs are being used as short-term rentals, aka AirBnBs. (2) ADUs are providing home ownership opportunities to people who cannot afford single-family homes.

Andy Masley @AndyMasley

This is one of the funniest podcast moments that I know of. Tyler Cowen asks Sam Altman about YIMBY stuff, Sam says "I haven't thought about that because we're about to build God" and Cowen just ploughs through and asks him about Chattanooga's land use policy

AskAubry 🦝 @ask_aubry

Thanks, Obama! In order to spite President Obama Wyoming GOP wrote into their state Constitution "each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions.” This insert is the reason why they can't pass an abortion ban.

Andrea Matranga 🇺🇦🌻 @andreamatranga

I swear just a few years ago this area used to be full of people moving cargo around in forklifts, playing bumper cars with them even, and now that's all been replaced with these monstrosities. I hate it when a neighborhood gets gantrified.

Jeremiah Johnson 🌐 @JeremiahDJohns

We need @OpenAI to build an AI that can automatically complete the 4000-page NEPA reviews in an hour

Sar Haribhakti @sarthakgh

This is the most nuanced, balanced, principled and well-written case I have seen from a journalist in favor of banning Tiktok Really well done @alex techcrunch.com/2023/03/23/tik…

Darrell Owens @IDoTheThinking

Correct. Im quite sympathetic to the "new apartments are ugly" criticism but ive been to enough meetings to know that even with good architecture the opposition pivots to their real objection which is more people and tall buildings, not how it looks.

Max Dubler 🏳️‍🌈 @maxdubler

YIMBYs’ performative disdain for aesthetic criticism of new multifamily housing is grounded in their understanding that there is nothing that can be done to placate criticism that is fundamentally rooted in hostility to new buildings and neighborhood change in general. https://t.co/LS2klJyVrK

Jason McDaniel @ValisJason

I agree with this. It reflects the degree to which Republicans have become “post-policy.” What matters to them is opposing things that disfavored groups support, especially if that means maintaining status quo for some favored groups.

Arpit Gupta @arpitrage

As of, say, 2019 it seemed like zoning reform was an issue which was "up for grabs" for either political party. You could imagine a "supply side progressive" or straightforward "deregulation" lens. These days, seems increasingly coded as a left leaning policy, with R opposition.